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Home Unknown	By : katecooley Category: S through Z > Xena Views: 15190 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Xena, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 24
- 25
- 26
See part one for all the semi-legal song and dance.
Oooh, I'm sorry this took so long. Wicked writer's block arrived with the snow. But I may have it knocked.

***

Part 25 - Family Dynamic

"You know how he is."
Joxer couldn't see what was going on - his eyes were closed and he was supposed to be concentrating as Aphrodite had showed him. It wasn't really that hard, actually, once she'd laid out the particulars. Once he had it down, it would be something he could do without thinking about it.
It wasn't all that easy, either. He could feel a ripple pulling at him from the inside, new power flexing and rising like a tide. It was hard not to give in to it and let it wash over him, but he was determined to reign it in. All he had to do was concentrate and think all of that energy into a manageable ball. Teach that power who was in charge, as Aphrodite had said.
Not so easy when there was a conversation happening close by. Especially when that conversation was making the power he was trying to corral lean and reach in that direction. He had an immense urge to toss in his two dinars. But he resolutely kept his mouth shut and imagined gathering those tendrils of power in. It was kind of like trying to keep an octopus in a net bag, but he was managing it as best as he could. He could do this. He really could�
"Yeah, I know." Cupid scuffed his boot on the floor, scowling at it. "But� it's me! Why would he need to hide from me?" A look of 'duh' leveled at him and he went back to his boot. "I mean aside from that. He doesn't know that."
One of these days, The Goddess of Love was sure her eyes were going to roll straight out of her head. Of course Strife didn't know that. He was too busy trying to hide his own feelings about her son to ever notice her son's feelings for him. Though, judging from the scroll he'd dropped off at Cupie's, he wasn't exactly hiding them much anymore. She was tempted to boot her first-born child in the behind and just tell him herself, but something told her it'd do her no good. He needed to talk to his cousin.
"Don't worry, Pookie. He'll slow down, you'll catch up and then�" she rolled a hand in the air as a finisher, not really wanting to end the thought with him fainting dead away on the floor. Which, if he saw the image in her head of just what would happen between his cousin and himself, was a dead certainty. The love goddess cast a look back to Joxer. He was struggling with his task, a fine sheen of sweat had broken out on his brow and he had that 'I'm concentrating' look on his face that would probably drive her war god brother mad with desire. Those two� she shook her head slightly. Not that she was surprised. She couldn't have found Arry a better mate if she'd tried. She'd always suspected that he'd need someone less soft and girly than herself and slightly less crazy than most female warrior types tended to be. And Joxer fit the bill nicely in both areas, as well as several extra ones. She wondered, though, what Joxer was going to get from this, aside from a good, hard, regular plowing. He'd always wanted to be a hero, and now was kind of stuck being a god. Most people would jump for joy� And most people aren't Joxer, she grumbled to herself, ignoring the continued protests and near-whining coming from her son. Not that she believed that her brother didn't care for Joxer. Hades knew THAT wasn't true. But he guarded his heart like gold and threw up walls like he was the God of Masonry�

And speak of the bricklayer� She could feel him scanning her temple, looking no doubt for his wayward snookie-pie. She could even feel the eyebrow launching up when he found Joxer there. Another roll of her eyes preceded the burst of light that delivered her brother in front of her, looking archly annoyed at her.
"Now, what was it I said about interference from the House of Love?"
"Oh, stuff it, Arry. No one's interfering." She cast a look to Joxer and could see his brow furrowing deeper in concentration. Her voice lifted over to him, "Ignore him, Studmuffin. You just keep workin' on it."
"Working on what, precisely?" Ares probably should have been annoyed about being grabbed by the arm and pulled over to the other side of the lush room, but the serious look on his sister's face dampened a lot of his anger.
"He's manifesting."
"Oh."
"Yeah, oh. You're lucky Cupie was at your place or who knows how it might have come out or what it might have done to poor ol' Joxie."
"Damn it. I thought we'd have some more time." Ares cast a long look at Joxer, his new god-energy starting to trickle out at the edges. "We'll have to get him dedicated."
"It's a godhood, not a death sentence, Arry. Daddy Dearest might be a stubborn old goat, but he's not a complete ogre." A scoffing noise burst out of Ares, giving his opinion of that particular assessment of the King of the Gods. "Besides, the sooner Joxer gets squared away, the easier things'll be for him."
"I know." Ares' lips pursed and he grumbled. "I just hate the thought of shoving him out on his own like that."
"Who says he's gonna be on his own? He could be House of War. And I wouldn't mind him as House of Love." Another withering look came from her brother. "At least you wouldn't have to worry about him over here. You know I'd look after him."

"But what if�"
She could chart that 'what if' to its conclusion and she could understand his reticence. She wasn't entirely thrilled with the other end of the family herself. And there was always a chance that Joxer might get assigned into their ranks. "We'll deal with 'what if' when we run into it. No big." The noise he made told her otherwise. "Besides, if I'm any judge, he's not straying very far."
"He does seem to have a knack for War, doesn't he?"
He wasn't sure he liked that wry grin on his sister's face. Of all the gods, he knew best what she was really capable of and he was glad that they got along. Ticking off the head goddess of the House of Love was something most of them judiciously avoided. Being on the receiving end of her full wrath was something no one would invite. And they didn't even know what that truly meant. "He's got SOMETHING for War, I'll give you that much."
She didn't make him blush - that was a once-a-millennia event and she'd been the one lucky enough to catch him and Pan together way back at the turn of the last century. But the eyebrow nudged up and his lips pursed� that'd be good enough for now. Dite threw her hands up in a mock-defensive gesture, palms out to her brother. "I know, I know. Hands off." She cast a look over her shoulder to Joxer, whose furrowed brow had smoothed out considerably, giving him a concentrated but more peaceful look. The love goddess lifted her voice to him. "Hey Jox, you up to trying something?" A faint nod, but one she couldn't miss. He was really working hard there. She hoped he was designated to them - she'd hate to have to face that work ethic on someone who wasn't on her side. Aphrodite motioned for Ares to follow her back over so she didn't have to shout. Raspy so didn't suit her.
"OK, you got it all rounded up together?" Another nod. "Good. I want you to put it away in your pocket like a rock. Think ya can?" A third nod. "Cool. When you're done, you can quit. I don't wanna tire you out�" She grinned wickedly over at her brother. "That job's taken already." A faint grin sprung up on Joxer's lips and Dite watched her brother's scowl deepen. She threw her hands up again, her own smile not flagging one bit.
Something floated over Joxer like a warm blanket and he could recognize a barrier being set around him, making the ambient emotions and thoughts in the air fuzz out. "There ya go, sweetie. All set." He could almost feel an invisible tweak on his cheek, too.
"So what's with him?" Ares' voice was low enough to keep the conversation from traveling, but loud enough for Joxer to catch. He opened his eyes and followed the War God's nod to his son, who'd taken to sulking a little off away from what they were doing.
"Oh, you know how he is. Ever since Psycho took off, he gets down sometimes." It wasn't a total lie - Cupid's break-up with the Goddess of the Mind had been swift (though not unexpected by everyone except her husband) and painful, leaving him a little dazed in its wake. And melancholy hadn't been a stranger to him in the interim. But just telling Ares wouldn't get this going anywhere good. He had all the tact of a rampaging elephant. He'd have summoned his wayward nephew with a bellow that would have shattered every window in the place, yanked him by the scruff of the neck and tossed him into Cupid's lap, scowling at them to 'work it out or else.'
At least, that's what she pictured him doing anyway. It was better to deceive him about it, besides� she was sure Cupid would be more willing to chat it out with Dear Old Dad than with Mom. "Maybe you could haul him along with you - he always cheers up when he spends time with you." One hundred percent true - Cupid always enjoyed spending time with Ares whenever they could swing their schedules together.
Ares mulled it over in a fast few seconds. True, he did enjoy time with his first-born son, especially since their respective positions did plenty to keep them apart. And it had been a while since they'd spent any time alone. That definitely sounded good�
"Oh, balls!" Aphrodite interrupted his thoughts with a stamp of her foot. "I totally forgot that I've got this workshop-thingie with my priestesses in Thebes. If you take Cupie, I've gotta stick around with Bliss� or bring him with. And that's not gonna fly�" Inspiration and rescue came when her eyes fell on the newest Olympian, still straightening himself out as he tried not to eavesdrop on the conversation. "Brilliant. Joxie, you up to doing an old gal a favor?"
While he'd have been a bigger fool than anyone ever thought to call the Goddess of Love "old", he found himself smiling anyway. "Uh, sure! You name it, I'm up for it." A deep chuckle from Ares made him flush a little, heat tickling up from him collar. Instead of shying away, though, he found himself tossing an eyebrow waggle to the God of War that made Ares' mouth twitch into a smirk.
"Easy, boys." Dite cast a look to her brother and his� yes, his lover, that much was for sure. This was a pairing to be reckoned with. "Joxie, I gotta jet off in a minute and Ol' Dark and Growly is gonna take Cupie along with him on a father-son-type thing. You think you could keep an eye on Bliss for us?"
The bottom of his stomach dropped to his shoes. There was helping and then there was HELPING. "Uhhhh, really?" Something about being put in charge of a god was a little unnerving.
"It's a piece of cake," Dite assured him, even though Ares snorted in disbelief. "He's a peach. He's taking a nap now and I shouldn't be too long."
Joxer thought about it fast. He liked Bliss and he'd watched kids before� just not ones who could fly or zap themselves away just by thinking about it. A small knot of panic formed in his belly - what if that happened? Would he be able to find Bliss if the little guy got away from him? What if he got hurt? Would Joxer be able to take care of him? Did godly children have needs that mortal children didn't? As much as he didn't like to think about it, this was a task he was woefully under-prepared to take on. He could probably swing the basics, but it almost felt like he'd need�
"And if you need any help, all you have to do is shout," Ares interrupted his worrying, clearly on the same page as his former worshipper. "We'll keep an ear out."
"I'm sure I can handle things," though Joxer's voice said anything but. "I wouldn't want to pull you two away from what you were doing. That wouldn't be helping you out."
"Piffle. I'll put the boys on alert." Dite waved a hand and got a far-away look in her eyes as she mentally put out the call. In no time at all, twin flashes of light appeared and deposited two bodies in mid-argument in the Hall of Love.
"I told you, Dumbass, she was calling me. Go back and see if you can find the rest of your pants." The darker-haired one sniped, giving the blond version of himself a hearty shove.
"Go screw, Feeb. Don't you have a closet to go hide in or something?" a push came right back from the blond, who snorted out a laugh. "Besides, I wouldn't diss the shorts when you're wearing a dress, SIS."
"It's a toga, jackass." *swat*
"You say 'tomato', I say 'ballgown'." *cuff*
"You're gonna be sayin' 'OW' in a minute, Dillweed."

"Yeah, this was a good decision," Ares grumbled, a smirk in place as he watched their twin sons escalate into headlocks and arm twists.
"Hush," Dite scowled and pouted, grabbing the nearest twin and yanking him free of his brother. "That's enough, you two. I got a job I need you to do." Matching groans rose up from both young gods. "Settle down. I just need you to stick around in case Joxer needs some help. He's gonna be watching Bliss. Just keep an ear out if he needs you."
A pair of skeptical looks found her. "Yeah?"
"That's it?"
"That's it. Think you can handle being helpful for a little while?"
The twins eyed each other up slowly, eyebrows raising now and again. "Sure, Mom."
"Yeah, sure. We'll give Joxer a hand."
"If he needs it," Ares intoned, eyeing both of his boys. One didn't need to read minds to know that they probably were cooking up something.
"Right Dad."
"Of course, Pop," the blond turned his attention to Joxer. "You name it, dude, and we're there for ya!" And with a cackle, they both disappeared in matching flashes again.
"Oh yeah. That makes me feel SO much better," the God of War snorted. He rolled his eyes as he turned to Joxer. "Don't call them unless it's an absolute emergency."
"No problem," Joxer smiled faintly, imagining what help the two of them would actually be. It made him shudder a little inside. But he guessed that some godly help was better than none� or something like that.
"Don't freak the guy out, Arry. They're a lot more help than they look."
"They'd have to be," the war god chuckled, stepping closer to Joxer. The deep rumble of his voice washed over the former mortal like a caress. "If there's any real trouble, they'll come through. But they're a few decades shy of their second century. You know how that is." Joxer nodded, sort of getting it. He had brothers. It couldn't be THAT much different. In fact, he was pretty sure he'd heard that very argument in his own life. Before he could ponder much more, his lips were happily trapped against Ares' in a quick but lingering and hearty kiss. Aphrodite's squeal was pushed into the background as everything beyond the two of them blurred out. It was like being trapped within a bubble of momentary pleasure, one Joxer was sure he didn't want to leave for a long time. Of course, it didn't last, as Ares parted from him all too soon.
"You'll be fine."
Joxer's lips buzzed, not quite feeling like his own. "I'll try."
"You'll be fine," Ares reassured him with a friendly squeeze of his arm and a mental touch that almost made him melt. Oh, you're gonna have to show me how to do THAT, Joxer's brain murmured, drawing a chuckle from the God of War.

It will be my pleasure, Ares' voice rumbled through him again, the temporary shield keeping the rest of the world safe from the wave of lust that rushed through the newest god. Believe me.

Still a little dizzy, Joxer watched Ares collect his downhearted son and blink off to parts unknown for a little bonding. Aphrodite didn't stick around much longer either, giving him some kind of reassurance before poofing off in a cloud of pink hearts and roses.
He could do this. He KNEW he could do this. At least, he hoped he could do this. Sitting down on a puffy cushion, he took quick stock of the situation. Watching a godling. Alone. With the bickering twin gods of Pain and Fear as back-up. One thing was painfully clear to him.
He was going to need coffee for this. Lots and lots of coffee.
-tbc-
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